Canopy Partners LLC Purchases 579 Shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Canopy Partners LLC increased its position in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 12.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,056 shares of the payment services company’s stock after acquiring an additional 579 shares during the period. Canopy Partners LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $1,501,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of AXP. Sellwood Investment Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Express in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp bought a new position in shares of American Express during the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Curio Wealth LLC acquired a new position in American Express during the 4th quarter worth about $37,000. Financial Life Planners bought a new position in shares of American Express during the fourth quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Express in the fourth quarter worth approximately $40,000. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Express

In related news, insider Raymond Joabar sold 15,179 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $313.94, for a total value of $4,765,295.26. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 23,866 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,492,492.04. The trade was a 38.88 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Michael J. Angelakis bought 3,700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $269.89 per share, with a total value of $998,593.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $998,593. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

American Express Stock Performance

NYSE AXP opened at $233.50 on Monday. American Express has a 1 year low of $214.51 and a 1 year high of $326.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 1.58 and a quick ratio of 1.57. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $288.96 and a 200-day moving average price of $289.63. The firm has a market cap of $164.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.67, a PEG ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.16.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.00 by $0.04. American Express had a return on equity of 32.65% and a net margin of 15.36%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that American Express will post 15.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 4th will be given a $0.82 dividend. This is an increase from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.40%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 4th. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 23.41%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have weighed in on AXP shares. Robert W. Baird raised shares of American Express from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $265.00 target price for the company in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on shares of American Express from $350.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of American Express from $330.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. HSBC lifted their price objective on American Express from $270.00 to $294.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Citigroup cut their target price on American Express from $320.00 to $300.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 24th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have assigned a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $302.24.

About American Express

American Express Company, together with its subsidiaries, operates as integrated payments company in the United States, Europe, the Middle East and Africa, the Asia Pacific, Australia, New Zealand, Latin America, Canada, the Caribbean, and Internationally. It operates through four segments: U.S. Consumer Services, Commercial Services, International Card Services, and Global Merchant and Network Services.